Payphone
by Selena Snow
Summary: Energon pooled in the mech's optics. Mercury rain poured down outside the rusty comm. center. It was in one of the older areas of Cybertron that had yet to be restored. One lone comm. center, sitting there in the mercury rain with one spark broken mech inside. He was the only one around. He was glad for that. No one was ever allowed to see his tears except for...
1. Chapter 1

**I'm at a payphone trying to call home**  
**All of my change I spent on you**  
**Where have the times gone **  
**Baby it's all wrong, **  
**where are the plans we made for two?**

Energon pooled in the mech's optics. Mercury rain poured down outside the rusty comm. center. It was in one of the older areas of Cybertron that had yet to be restored. One lone comm. center, sitting there in the mercury rain with one spark broken mech inside.

He was the only one around. He was glad for that. No one was ever allowed to see his tears except for...

His spark stuttered. What had happened? Where had it all gone wrong?

He shuttered his optics, shaking his helm with resignation. He should move on...he just knew he never could. He slowly opened the old door to the comm. center, barely hearing the sickening screech. Mercury rain splatted against his cherry red frame mercilessly. He didn't care about the slight sting of acid burn. He just cared about the sharper one in his spark.

He trudged back to the old fortress of Iacon. That, too, still lay in ruins, more of as a mark of history. Few bots went in their. There wasn't really any need to nowadays. Decepticons and Autobots finally had peace. Cybertron was being pieced back together slowly but surely.

No bot paid much attention to the mech. They all flitted around, going about their daily business. He stepped into the fortress without being stopped.

His optics gazed around slowly. The sirens. The red lights. The red optics. Even though he was just a youngling, he could remember that cycle.

_"Danni? Wha-" _

_"Stay silent, my spark. We'll be alright."_

A tiny smile came onto the mech's face. Being silent was never really his style. That was more of Sunny's job.

His processor took him back farther.

_Shy giggles._

_"Sides! Wha 'ou doin'?" _

_A small smirk. _

_"I'm plan a 'rank."_

_"A pran'?" _

_"Yeah, a pran...k." _

_She giggled at him, making the little bot blush. She always did have a way about that. _

_"Sides?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_"Who 'ou gonna bon' whe' 'ou ge' olda?" _

_The sparkling mech looked at her. _

_"I dunno. Some bot pretty." _

_"Li'e who?" _

_He looked at her, blushing again. _

_"I dunno...maybe 'ou."_

Sideswipe's optics turned down to the floor. How had this all happened?


	2. Chapter 2

**Yeah, I, I know it's hard to remember **  
**The people we used to be...**

She cycled in a sharp gasp as she rounded a corner.

"Hey, lil femme! Get back 'ere! Ain't nobot gonna hurt cha!"

'Yeah, right,' she scoffed. She wasn't stupid. Her opi trained her better than that. She knew when to fire and when to run.

In this case, she should run.

She could have fired, though. Her name wasn't Sureshot for nothing. She ran down the empty streets. 'Scrap, I just knew that coming down to the ruins was a bad idea!' she mentally berated herself. Plenty of bots had warned her- she was just never one to listen.

She rounded another corner, looking back to see if they were following her-

_**SLAM**_

She fell down to the ground. "Ugh, what was that, a wall?" she muttered. She blinked open her optics to see a mech standing above her.

Her optics widened.

Wide robin blue optics stared down at her worriedly. Cherry red servos came down to help her up. Primus, he was gorgeous.

"Are you alright?" his baritone voice asked. Primus, that voice! She dazedly nodded her helm as he helped her stand up.

"'Ey! Yo, mech, I'm sorr 'bout tha'. She's kinda clumsy."

Sureshot's optics widened. The mechs from the alley. They had followed her.

The lead mech put his grimy servo on her shoulder plating. "'Ey, sweetspark, watch where ya goin' next time, okay? Le's go home now, an-" The mech was cut off by an almighty smack.

"I'm not going anywhere with a mech like you! Now stop acting like you know me, and get back to the alley where you belong!" she retorted furiously. Honestly! The nerve of some mechs! She spun on her heel struts and stalked away.

The mech growled deeply in his throat. "Come on, now," he leered, reaching out for her. This time, it was a red servo that stopped him. In a matter of seconds, the mech was flipped over onto his back, and his cohorts were scurrying away.

"When a femme tells you to leave her alone, you leave her alone, okay?" the red mech said firmly. "Now get out." The mech nodded quickly and got up off the ground before breaking into a sprint.

The red mech huffed. "Some bots, huh?" he quipped to Sureshot as if it had all been a joke.

"Uh, yeah," she agreed, thrown off by his sudden change in mood. "Some bots..." a beat "And...who? Are you? Again?" she stuttered.

He glided forward on what appeared to be wheels attached to his pedes. "I'm Sideswipe. And the lovely femme who is standing in front of me? What is her designation?"

Sureshot blushed slightly, but couldn't beat down her giggle. "Sureshot." What?! She never blushed! Least of all around someone like this mech! He was probably just another player, anyways. Even if he was ridiculously good-looking.

Sideswipe smiled brightly. "Well, Sureshot! Would you be up to going out for a nice cup of energon?" he offered, still grinning.

Sureshot's smile dropped. "No." So her suspicions were confirmed. He was a player. Figures. "I'm fine," she said cooly as she started to walk away.

Sideswipe's optics widened as he realized his misstep. "Hey! Wait a second!" he called after her. He jogged up to her, getting in front of her as he walked backwards.

"Go away, Sideswipe," she said moodily, pushing him aside.

He reached out and grabbed her servo, pulling her back to him. "Wait, I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come off like that. Really. Now how about that energon?" he offered once more. She rolled her optics and turned her helm away. He softly turned her helm back to look at him.

"Please?" Sureshot immediately decided that a look that pitiful should be banned. He looked like a kicked turbopuppy, for spark's sake! How could she say no?

She sighed. Opi wasn't gonna be happy with her. "Fine."

* * *

The walk to the "best energon cafe in the world" (according to Sideswipe, that is) wasn't as terrible as Sureshot expected. Sure, Sideswipe was rather talkative, and he kept trying to pry into her life, but he wasn't too invasive. He had even made her laugh a little bit!

"And then, I threw him off a cliff!" Sideswipe said proudly.

Sureshot gave him an incredulous look. "Really. You threw a mech four times your size off a cliff?"

Sideswipe's proud smile faded slightly. "Did I say four times? I meant two times."

She chuckled a little bit. "Still, even two times is a bit much for someone your...well...stature."

Sideswipe mocked hurt. "My stature? I may be shorter than most mechs, but that doesn't mean I'm weaker! I tossed that creepy mech over in the alley, right? You saw that!" he said convincingly as he opened the door to the cafe for her.

She laughed out loud this time as she walked through. "Yes, but still, he-OPI!" she shouted in surprise. Her opiluck stood there right in the door way with her danniluck not too far behind.

He raised an optic ridge at her. "What is this about a creepy mech in an alley?"

Sureshot stuttered. "Uhh...well...I...umm..."

Sideswipe decided to pop into the conversation at this time. "There was this mech, and wait, RATCHET!"

Ratchet peered down at the younger mech. "Sideswipe? Is that you? What have you been doing with my creation!"

"Opi, stop it! He's fine! Really! He was just escorting me here to meet some friends, aren't you, Sideswipe?" she asked him far too sweetly.

He stuttered, his processor still struggling to get over the fact that she was **_Ratchet's_** creation. "Uh, yes, I was. Aaaand, I was just about to go catch up with Sunny, actually!" he lied not so convincingly.

Ratchet scowled at the miscreant who had caused him far too much trouble in the past. "Funny, because I was just talking to Sunstreaker in here," Ratchet said. "Funny how that works?" he spoke, words dripping with sarcasm.

Sideswipe swallowed nervously. "Haha, yeah, funny. Sunny never said anything about coming here-"

"Don't call me that."

Sideswipe's optics brightened in mock surprise. "Well, what do you know! Sunny's here!"

"I said don't call me that," the moody yellow bot repeated as he walked past them before he transformed and drove away. Sureshot shuttered her optics. Just what was happening here?

"Okay, opi!" she laughed nervously as she put her arm around her opi's shoulders, gently escorting him out. "I'll be home before curfew, okay?"

Moonracer came out of the cafe chuckling quietly to herself. She patted Sureshot on the helm. "I'll straighten him out- don't worry," she whispered with a wink.

"Thanks, danni," Sureshot whispered back with an urgent look that screamed "get him out of here now". With both creators gone, Sureshot walked over to the bar, sat down, and slammed her helm down onto the counter.

Sideswipe walked up to the bar. "Two Solars, please," he ordered quickly as he sat down next to her.

"I'm so so so so_ SO_ sorry about that," Sureshot apologized as she brought her helm up. She put her servos on her forehelm and rested her elbows on the counter. "He's always like that."

Sideswipe snorted. "Yeah. I know. He was the bane of my existence for Primus knows how long."

Sureshot sent him a questioning look. "How so?" she asked.

Sideswipe leaned back in his chair. "Well, let's see, I was in the Autobot army, Ratchet was the CMO, and he hated my brother and me."

Sureshot snorted. "Probably with good reason too."

He sent her a hurt look. "Hey, now! I would have never pranked him if he hadn't been so cranky!" he told her, making her smile a bit. "But really, you never mentioned your opi was Ratchet," he said, getting back on track.

"I've known you for how long?" she returned with a sarcastic look. She put her helm down on the counter again. "I probably would have never told you, anyways," she added on quietly, closing her optics.

Sideswipe lowered his helm down right next to hers, peering down at her. "Why not?" he asked softly.

She snapped her helm up in frustration. "It's just that...ugh," she put her helm down again. Sideswipe watched, amused, as she started to rant.

"Have you ever just wanted to be free? No curfew, no boundaries, none of that? I mean, not go all crazy, but just go have some fun? Or at least just go do something with your life?" she asked him quickly, her words blurring together. He opened his mouth to respond, but she continued.

"And you want it more than anything, and you wish your creators would trust you enough to just go out and live a little! Instead, I'm just stuck in my housing unit or at the med bay helping out with a broken servo every now and then. I want more out of life then just this!" she said, pouring her spark out to this mech she didn't even really know.

He put a servo on her shoulder to stop her. She breathed in deeply, trying to calm down. "Do you know what that feels like?" she asked quietly.

He stared deeply into her optics, his expression more serious than ever before.

"No."

He cracked a grin and laughed. "I really have no clue what that feels like because I am free. My creators raised me right and let me go, knowing that I'd get in trouble some times, but that I'd be just fine. That's probably why my brother and I never got along with Ratchet," he told her with a grin.

She frowned, looking down at her pedes. "Yeah, probably," she said, sounding disappointed.

He frowned and pulled her helm up. "Hey, now. Don't get all down on me. Who's to say that you can't start that life now? It's a new Cybertron! And new age! Why not live life?" he asked her encouragingly.

She smiled and launched herself forward at him, hugging him tightly. And then Sideswipe did something he hadn't done since he was a youngling. He blushed. Sideswipe blushed. And then he hugged her back anyways.

She let go of him after a while, and he noticed their energon sitting on the counter. He passed hers to her, and raised his cube up in the air. "To living life!" he announced with a grin.

She laughed and clinked her energon against his. They both sipped a little bit and shared a look, both laughing about how weird they were both being.

"So..." Sureshot started conversationally, "You mentioned your creators. Who were they?"

Sideswipe sipped his energon. "Jazz and Melody. Melody's been offline for some time now-," Sureshot gave him a sympathetic look, "-but you get used to it. I miss her, but I love my opi. He stayed strong, and-"

"Wait," she interrupted, "Did you say Jazz and Melody? That sounds...familiar..." she dropped off.

Sideswipe looked at her like it should be obvious. "Well, yeah, a lot of people have heard of him. He's the best saboteur there is! He-"

"No, no...he sounds...really familiar..." she said with a confused look. "Did you say you also have a brother? What was his designation?" she inquired, recognition coming into her voice.

"Sunstreaker..." he trailed off. He was starting to follow her. "Do you have a sister named-"

"Solarstar," they said in unison, optics widening.

"...Sides?" she questioned.

"'Shot? Wait," he laughed to himself, "You mean...you're still online? How'd you survive the war?" he asked excitedly.

"I was sent on an escape ship with other younglings and femmes..." she trailed off, energon pricking at her optics. Her servo moved on its own, placing itself softly on his cheek. "I was told you were offlined..." she whispered, hiccuping slightly as tears began to fall.

Sideswipe caught her tear swiftly. "And I was told you were offlined..." he whispered back, gathering her in his arms. "It's so good to see you again, 'Shot."

She laughed and sniffed a bit, pulling back from the hug to wipe her tears as she laughed. "You too, I guess. Primus, how did I not recognize you? Didn't you used to be silver?" she asked.

"And didn't you used to be blue?" he returned with a laugh. "I gotta say, though...I like you in white," he complimented.

She blushed. "Thanks," she said quietly. She looked up at him with a strange smile. "Weird...usually it was you who blushed."

Sideswipe stuttered, much to Sureshot's amusement. "H-Hey, now! I did not blush!" he told her, but his cheek plating said otherwise.

She laughed at him. "Oh, is that some blue I see dusting your cheeks? A gorgeous color on you, really," she mocked, still laughing. He blushed even more, slapping her playfully on her arm.

"Oh, wait, what is that I'm remembering? Something about a crush on Sunny-"

Her optics brightened in horror. "No! Sideswipe, no! You know to never bring that up!" she screamed in horror. The rest of the crown in the cafe watched the to reunited bots with little amusement.

"Hey, buddy, if you're gonna be loud, get out of here!" one bot from the back shouted.

Sideswipe got up from the counter and pretended to swoon. "Oh, Sideswipe, he's just so dreamy! His yellow paint job! And his blue optics!" he said in a feminine voice as he sauntered out of the cafe with a slightly drunken sway. Sureshot chased after him, screaming at him to stop.

"Sideswipe! Stop it! Sides!" but he just kept singing out in the open streets of Iacon about her youngling crush on Sunstreaker.

She growled, and shouted out the one word that she knew would make him stop. "SWIPER!" she shouted over the noise.

Sideswipe froze and turned around to her slowly.

"What was it you used to say?" she taunted him. "I am thwiper the tewwible?" she mocked in a lisp.

He frowned, but then smirked. "And wasn't it you who hated the organic game 'tag'?" he returned.

She frowned, not seeing where he was going with this. "Yeah, because I'm not fast, and- NO! Sideswipe!" She screamed as she started running. She knew what he would do if he caught her. He knew her one weakness.

She ran through the streets until she saw no more. He eventually caught up with her and tackled her, sending them rolling down a hill. Once they got to the bottom, he tickled her without mercy, making her laugh and squeal and squirm to no end.

"Hahaha, haha- SIDES! Hahahaha, STOP IT! HAHA PLEASE SIDES STOP IT!" she laughed.

"Ah, ah, ah!" he teased. "What are the magic words?"

"Haha, I'll, never! Haahahaha!"

"What are they?"

"SIDESWIPE IS AWESOME!" she finally yelled, making him relent from his attack. She laughed and breathed in deeply as she calmed down. Both of them cycled in multiple breaths, still laughing. They laid back on the ground, both still out of breath.

Sureshot closed her optics and cuddled into Sideswipe's side, prompting him to put his arm around her shoulders. They both stared up at the night sky, basking in the light of Cybertron's two moons.

"I remember doing this when we were little..." Sideswipe whispered, not wishing to break the silence.

Sureshot looked up at him and smiled softly. "Me too."

They laid there for a while longer, enjoying the peace, before a loud comm. destroyed it.

** ::SURESHOT WHERE ARE YOU? IT'S AFTER CURFEW!:: -Ratchet**

Sureshot sighed. Right. Curfew.

** ::Coming, opi:: -Sureshot**

Sureshot got up, quickly followed by Sideswipe. She smiled sadly. "I have to go, now. Opi just commed me."

Sideswipe nodded his helm reluctantly. He smiled. "Why don't I walk you home?" he offered, holding out his servo.

She smiled, taking it. "Sure."

The walk to her housing unit was silent. But in that silence, there was still a conversation going on between the two bots made up entirely out of short, sudden glances at each other. And each time one caught the other, they would both look away blushing. Neither one commented on the ordeal. Neither one spoke. They both simply thought.

Since when was she so gorgeous? Since when did he get taller? Has she missed me? Has he missed me? Does he have some bot else? Please, Primus, don't let her have some bot else.

Wait...why would I even be worried if he/she had some bot else?


	3. Chapter 3

**It's even harder to picture **  
**That you're not here next to me**

Sunstreaker laid on his berth in his and Sideswipe's apartment. It was late in the lunar cycle, and both moons were out. He felt like painting, but he didn't know what. A memory flashed through his processor.

_"...Sunny?" _

_"Yeah?" _

_"Whatcha doin?" _

_"...I'm...pain'in."_

_"Pain'in? Wha's tha'?" _

_The youngling thought about it for a moment. _

_"Ih's whe' 'ou pu' a pic'ure on a piece o' paper." _

_"Oh...ih's prehhy."_

_"Tanks."_

Solarstar...some bots may think he had forgotten about her, but he never had. He had met up with Ratchet today because Ratchet had commed saying he had good news. This was a ritual, really. No matter what trouble he and Sideswipe got in, Sunstreaker would always stay after their usual lecture to ask if Ratchet had heard anything about 'Star. Then the day came when they heard the news no bot ever wanted to hear...

_"Ratchet, how is she-"_

_Ratchet turned to him. _

_"She's gone, Sunstreaker. Both of them."_

No one quite understood Sunstreaker like her. (and of course Sideswipe) So when Ratchet commed him today saying he had good news, of course he came. And you would think that he would be excited to see her. And he was, but...

He was nervous, for some reason. When he'd seen Sureshot today, he'd made it a point not to make optic contact with her. He couldn't bear it. He didn't even know if the twins remembered him and Sideswipe. Sureshot didn't seem to recognize Sideswipe, and vice versa. Of course, Sideswipe would be the one to forget.

He knew that Sideswipe meant well, and that he didn't mean to forget the twins. How could he? Surely his younger twin would remember in time-

Wait, what's that excited feeling coming from the bond?

"SUNNY! SHE'S ONLINE! THEY'RE BOTH ONLINE! AND I-" Sideswipe shouted as he walked in the apartment, then reaching Sunstreaker's door. "I think my spark is acting funny," he said with a frown, rubbing his spark plating with his servo.

Sunstreaker scoffed. "It's probably nothing," he dismissed, rolling over so his back strut was facing his twin.

Sideswipe frowned even more. "Did you not hear me, Sunny? They're on. _line_," he stressed with an excited smile.

Sunstreaker looked back at his brother. "Yay, woohoo, congrats," he said dryly, turning away once more.

Sideswipe frowned, walked over, and flipped the berth. "What the scrap, Sides?!" Sunstreaker roared as he got up. "You scratched my paint!"

Sideswipe charged up to his brother and pushed him over again. "Good! Maybe that'll wake you up a little more so you can hear me! Sureshot and Solarstar are online. Living! And I saw Sureshot tonight! Primus, she looked gorgeous. You should have seen her, Sunny!" he said, trying to convince his brother as he walked away.

"Don't call me Sunny," he muttered as he walked out of the door to their apartment.

Sideswipe sighed. Sometimes he just didn't get his brother.

* * *

Sunstreaker sighed as he walked down the street. Very few bots were out and about at this time of the lunar cycle. He made his way slowly to the paint venders in the market.

"Sunstreaker! Great timing! I was just about to close up shop!" the vender greeted amicably. "See anything you like?"

"I'll take the usual colors," Sunstreaker requested.

"So...a can of our finest Sunburst Yellow, and 2 quarts of Shimmer Gold?" the vender confirmed. Sunstreaker nodded silently, handed over the credits, and stored the paint away in his subspace.

He walked away quietly, gazing up at the stars. Thinking. Which unfortunately meant that he wasn't paying attention to the road in front of him.

Before he could comprehend what was going on, he tripped over a piece of rubble and fell down faceplate-first onto the road.

"Ah, scrap," he muttered, wiping himself off as he stood up. There goes all of his new paint. He was hoping he wouldn't have to use it all.

"Little clumsy there, eh, Sunny?"

His optics flew open. That voice. Her voice.

He turned around. And there she was.

She smiled at him, her gold paint shimmering softly. She approaching him slowly, her petite servos clasped together in front of her.

"I know you've been asking opi, Sunny," she told him. She cracked a small smile, looking down, "And I also know that you just bought 2 quarts of my paint color."

He stuttered, "You...you followed me."

She smirked. "As I always used to. Your opi trained me well," she mentioned off-handedly. She was just a few inches away from him now.

Sunstreaker knew he was trapped. "Yeah, well, he...uh..."

"Did you miss me at all, Sunstreaker?" she asked, her optics clearly displaying her hurt.

His optics widened, but he couldn't find the words. She had used his full name. She never did that unless she was really hurt.

She laughed. "No, it's fine- I get it. It was just a little sparkling crush, nothing more. Funny how a femme like me would hold onto something like that for all these years," she scoffed, turning away from him.

His optics widened when he realized that she was walking away. "Wait! Solarstar! Wait!" he shouted as he ran in her direction. But she had faded into the darkness. He fell to his knee joints and shook his helm. He should have said something. But what difference would it have made?

He was too caught up in his own thoughts to hear a light landing come from the rooftops above, or the soft footsteps.

He did hear a sigh though. "You always were too hard on yourself." The footsteps came around to the front of him, and slender arms wrapped around his neck.

"Sunny, I-"

"No," he said firmly, shaking his helm and pulling away from the hug. "Solarstar, I...I c-can't, I..." he stopped himself. He wasn't good enough for her. She deserved better.

He got up quickly, transformed, and sped away, leaving Solarstar staring after him.

* * *

Sunstreaker rolled over in his berth for what felt like the millionth time. He wished he had said something. He wished he had done something. All those nights dreaming of when he saw her, thinking of how he would run up to her and reaffirm his love for her. And all he had said was "I can't."

I can't.

He couldn't...could he?

The next morning he found himself on a hill. Not just any hill. It was the highest hill in Iacon, set way outside the city life. He sat there, feeling the silence, drinking it in.

"Beautiful, hm?"

She sat down to his right, leaning against him and setting her helm on his shoulder plating. He hesitated slightly, but decided against hiding anymore by putting his arm around her.

"I knew you'd give in eventually," she whispered teasingly.

He smirked at her. "It's kind of hard to not give in to you," he admitted, nuzzling his nasal plating against hers. She smiled at him, giving him a quick kiss on his cheek plating.

Solarstar sighed happily. "So it wasn't just a sparkling crush?" she asked with a giggle.

He chuckled, letting a rare smile come onto his face. "No, it wasn't just a sparkling crush."


	4. Chapter 4

**You say it's too late to make it **  
**But is it too late to try? **  
**And in our time that you wasted **  
**All of our bridges burned down**

Ever since that fateful lunar cycle Sureshot and Sideswipe were reunited, they couldn't get enough of each other. They always "happened" to "run into each other" when she and her familial unit were out and about. At first, Ratchet would never let her hang out with him when they "ran into each other randomly". He knew they'd planned it...somehow. It took a long talk with Moonracer for him to finally let her go...but only every now and then.

Sureshot and Sideswipe just never got bored with each other, it seemed. They still had this childish innocence about them when they walked together through the streets or took rare trips to the Sea of Light. They were always laughing or talking about something. How two bots could talk so much, no bot knew. It was definitely no secret to those close to them that she and Sideswipe hung out ever chance they could.

Sureshot tapped her digit against the table anxiously. Tonight was her first date with Sideswipe. She'd put on her best polish and made sure that she was right on time. She was so excited yet so nervous! Sureshot tilted her helm to the side in wonder. How did this come to be, again?

_"That was hilarious! Do you never get caught?" _

_"Not really. And um, by the way...I was wanting to ask you something..." _

_"Okay, what is it?" _

_"Would you, uh...or do you, um..want to, maybe...go on a date with me in two lunar cycles?" _

Sureshot smiled. Sideswipe had been so nervous for some reason when he asked her out. And sure enough, he'd been blushing.

Sureshot glanced around the restaurant once more, looking for Sideswipe. He'd said six, right? Yeah, of course he did...maybe she should comm him to make sure...

No, there was no way he could have forgotten. Right?

She sat there for a while longer, sipping her cube of mild grade energon, watching bots filter in and out. Before she knew it, it was almost 7:30. She sighed, glancing around the restaurant once more. Where was he?

One hour later, she finally left. She simply got up from her table, leaving credits on it, and walked out. He'd forgotten. Or maybe he'd changed. Maybe this was just a set up. Who knew. Who cared. Not Sureshot.

As she walked home in the cold evening all by herself, she couldn't help but wonder if she should comm him. Maybe he was in trouble? Maybe he'd gotten in a car wreck? Maybe...

**::Sides?:: -Sureshot**

**::Hey, 'Shot! What's up?:: -Sideswipe**

**::You...you're alright?:: -Sureshot**

**::Yeah, why would you-:: -Sideswipe**

Silence filled the comm.

**::Scrap, our date:: -Sideswipe**

**::Yeah, our date:: -Sureshot **

**::'Shot, I'm so sorry, I-:: -Sideswipe**

**::You forgot, didn't you?:: -Sureshot**

Silence filled the comm.

**::Whatever. I already left anyways:: -Sureshot**

**::No wait! I'll get right over there real fast! Just let me-:: -Sideswipe**

**::You've wasted enough of my time, Sideswipe:: -Sureshot**

**::No! Wait, I'll-:: -Sideswipe**

She huffed as she severed the link to comm. Figures.

By this point, she'd already reached her housing unit. She still lived at home with her creators and her twin. Not that she minded...much. One of these solar cycles she would get her own housing unit. Or maybe she'd find a mech one day and they would buy one together.

She walked in and shut the door softly. Her creators, as old as they were getting, had started to go to recharge earlier and earlier in the lunar cycle. Solarstar was probably out doing- well, whatever she did. Probably with Sunstreaker, as usual lately.

Sureshot trudged up the stairs and walked to her berth room slowly, still mulling over her less than wonderful first date. 'Maybe he has changed...bots do usually change over time...and it's not like I haven't changed either...but I still can't believe he would have forgotten.'

Sureshot shut her berth room door softly, fighting back the tears welling up in her optics. She didn't need him. He only cared about himself if he really forgot.

She laid down on her berth, curled up into a ball, and closed her optics. She didn't need him, she told herself. He only cared about himself if he really forgot. And with those last two thoughts, she slowly drifted off into recharge.

* * *

Sideswipe sped over to the restaurant. Scrap, how had he forgotten? He'd been looking forward to it all day! How had he-

Scrap. Now he remembered.

_Sideswipe looked in the mirror one last time. Primus, he felt like Sunny. He shouldn't care this much about how he looked. He started to walk away, but glanced back in the mirror one last time. And of course, as he was still walking away, a spare can of Sunny's paint stood in his way. _

_He tripped over it, and on his way down, hit his helm on his berth, knocking him out instantly. _

_Later, he slowly onlined his optics, confused as to why his room seemed upside down. _

**_::Sides?:: -Sureshot_**

_Sideswipe was awake immediately. _

**_::Hey, 'Shot! What's up?:: -Sideswipe_**

**_::You...you're alright?:: -Sureshot_**

_A frown crossed over Sideswipe's faceplate. Why was she asking if he was alright?_

**_::Yeah, why would you-:: -Sideswipe_**

_His optics widened. Their date. _

**_::Scrap, our date:: -Sideswipe_**

**_::Yeah, our date:: -Sureshot _**

**_::'Shot, I'm so sorry, I-:: -Sideswipe_**

**_::You forgot, didn't you?:: -Sureshot_**

_He didn't forget! He never could have! But how would he explain? How would he make it up to her?_

**_::Whatever. I already left anyways:: -Sureshot_**

**_::No wait! I'll get right over there real fast! Just let me-:: -Sideswipe_**

**_::You've wasted enough of my time, Sideswipe:: -Sureshot_**

**_::No! Wait, I'll-:: -Sideswipe_**

_He heard the tale-tell buzz of the line being severed. _

_He sighed. "Scrap." _

If Sideswipe could have, he would've shook his helm at himself. He was such an idiot! How could he have not seen that can of paint lying right there? He-

Wait a minute...can of paint...

Sideswipe adjusted his mirror real quick, gasping in horror when he saw splotches of Sunny's paint on him.

Could this lunar cycle get any worse?!

He transformed quickly as he arrived at the restaurant, not caring how ridiculous he looked. He walked up to the mech at the front of the restaurant.

"Have you seen a femme in here lately? White paint? Little shorter than me?" he asked quickly.

The mech seemed to think it over a bit, testing Sideswipe's patience. "No, I don't think so- Ah! Yes! I remember her," the mech told him. "Walked out of here a while ago. Didn't look too happy either-"

"Yeah, thanks," Sideswipe interrupted, about to run out the door.

"Hey, wait!" the mech called after him. "She left this," he said, handing Sideswipe a box. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it said To: Sideswipe on the front in their secret code from when they were little. His optics shuttered. He couldn't believe this.

"Yeah...I'll get this to her. Thanks," he mumbled as he walked out in a daze. He stopped just outside of the restaurant and sat down on a bench. It was a freezing cold lunar cycle. Had she walked home all by herself in this weather? He shook his helm. He was such an idiot.

He stared down at the box hesitantly. Should he...?

He slowly opened the box, almost scared as to what he would find inside. His optics widened as he saw what lay there inside. He took the small object into his servo.

_"'Shot, give it back!" _

_"Nope, not gunna!"_

He looked at the little figurine of a soldier from the Defense Force. It was his favorite toy growing up. He'd let Sureshot "steal" it from him, but really, he didn't mind. It was his favorite toy, and she was his favorite bot. The two seemed to go together.

He stood up and subspaced the toy, a new determination settling over him. He needed to go apologize.

* * *

Sureshot awoke to a loud tapping noise. She sleepily onlined her optics and looked around. She didn't see anything.

**tap tap tap**

She furrowed her brow and turned her helm around, gasping when she saw Sideswipe waving at her through her window. She rolled her optics as she got off her berth, walking briskly over to the window and opening it.

"Just what do you think you're doing here?" she demanded. "Can't you just leave me alone?" she asked, about to shut the window in his face plate.

He stopped the window and pushed it back up. "No, I can't. Look, 'Shot, I'm-"

"Don't call me 'Shot."

Sideswipe cringed. This was going to be harder than he thought. "Sweetspark, I-"

"And don't try to sweet talk me, either!" she shouted. "What was this, a joke? That's all everything is to you, isn't it? A joke!"

"Not when it comes to you, though," he insisted, slowly climbing through the window. Sureshot hadn't noticed that he'd barely been balancing on a ledge this entire time.

He took a small object out of his subspace, and, much to her horror, she saw that it was the figurine she was going to give to him. She snatched it out of his servos and walked away.

"How did you get this?" she asked quietly, about to burst.

He looked down. "I...I went to restaurant after you left. The mech at the front said you left it there," he explained.

"You...you opened the box?!" she asked as she turned around. "I left it there for a reason! I hoped it would be thrown away!"

"Why would you want it to be thrown away?" Sideswipe asked her sorrowfully. He stepped closer, but she stepped back. He reached out and took her helm in his servos. "Please, 'Shot...I'm sorry. Please, give me another chance," he pleaded. "I know I'm an idiot, I know. But I'm a love struck idiot who just needs another chance," he told her. "Please," he whispered.

Sureshot shook her helm slowly, much to his dismay. "I'm sorry, Sideswipe. I'm sorry," she whispered back as she removed his servos from her faceplate, transferring the figurine to his servo. She walked over to her berth and laid down, fighting back the tears. "Just...go. Please," she begged quietly, turning her back to him.

She heard footsteps walking away from her toward her window. "I'll make it up to you...I promise."

She only squeezed her optics shut tighter.

The next morning when she woke up from recharge, she didn't immediately online her optics. She didn't want to. She knew that today she would only be thinking about Sideswipe. It was going to be absolutely miserable.

'Better get the day over with,' she decided, onlining her optics.

Most femmes don't exactly expect to see crystal roses littering the floor when they wake up. Sureshot didn't, either.

But there they were. Covering every area of her floor, except for a convenient path to her door from her berth. She scrambled up and stood at the beginning of the path. Wow...

Wait, what was that tip of red she saw at the front of her berth...?

She got up on her berth and crawled to the front, surprised to see Sideswipe on the floor in a deep recharge. He seemed to have possibly literally _fallen_ into recharge. Sureshot giggled at the thought. And wait...was that...a spot of yellow on his paint?

She smiled as she leaned down and tapped his helm. He groaned as he onlined.

She giggled again. "Wakey, wakey, handsome," she greeted, prompting him to look up at her.

"Sureshot!" he said in surprise, but then he looked around, confused. "What am I doing here? I- oh. Right. I fell into recharge. On your floor..." he laughed, embarrassed as he felt heat rise in his cheek plating. "'Shot, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

She laughed, much to his surprise. "Don't be!" she interrupted with a wide smile. "I love it..." she trailed off, looking around the room. "How did you get all of these?" she asked.

He smiled at her as he stood up, careful not to crush any of the crystal roses. "I have my ways," he murmured, taking her servos into his. "Do you forgive me?" he asked sincerely.

She smiled. "Yes, I forgive you, if-" she paused dramatically, "you tell me why you have splattered spots of yellow on you," she finished with a laugh.

Sideswipe sighed dramatically, chuckling to himself. "That, my dear, is a very long...interesting story."

"I have time to hear it if it comes from you."


	5. Chapter 5

**I've wasted my nights**  
**You turned out the lights **  
**Now I'm paralyzed**  
**Still stuck in that time when we called it love**  
**But even the sun sets in paradise **

Sunstreaker and Solarstar sat atop the highest hill in Iacon. Their hill. No bot else went up there but those two. And the two lovestruck bots were glad for that. Both were quiet bots that no bot quite understood but them. Up there, they were free to talk and laugh and be themselves. Something that only they understood.

"So what's the latest news on Sides and Shot? They seem to be hanging out rather often," Solarstar noted.

Sunstreaker cracked a small smile. "And we haven't been?" he pointed out. "I was actually going to ask you the same thing. Sides is always in a daze, now. And he's been complaining about this weird feeling in his spark," he mentioned offhandedly.

"Hm...strange..." Solarstar trailed off, not wanting to say that she'd been having a weird feeling her spark, as well. And so had Sureshot.

It remained comfortably silent for a few beats.

"Do you remember when we were separated?" Solarstar asked randomly. Sunstreaker looked down at her with a hint of worry. She was usually not random. And when she was, her randomness usually came out of something deeper.

He tightened his hold on her as she sat in his lap. "Of course," he said quietly, watching the sky slowly turning dark. "Why?" he inquired, noticing that her helm was down.

She hesitated. "I don't know...I always think back to then...it wasn't exactly the greatest part of my life, you know?" she said, prompting him to ask her another question.

"What was it like from your perspective?"

She paused. "It...wasn't exactly...pleasant."

_Solarstar sat on her berth in her shared room with Sureshot. Shot was out and about as always- she was such a hyper youngling. Solarstar always was the quieter one. She looked out the tiny window in their room at the stars. Their ship had escaped Cybertron only a few cycles ago. She'd left Sunny only a few cycles ago. _

"I always wished...that I had gone to war. With you," she admitted.

"I couldn't let you, though," Sunstreaker said gently.

"Yeah," she chuckled softly. "I know. You would have never let me even get close to battle lines," she told him, making him chuckle a little bit. "But I always felt like my time on that ship was wasted."

_Solarstar wandered around the ship, her processor still only on Sunny. Did he miss her? How was his training going? Was he doing okay? She hoped so. Even as a youngling, she understood what was going on. Even if the older femmes didn't think she did. _

_She sighed. Time here moved so slow. And it was all such a waste, anyways. Any time without Sunny was a waste to her, at least. All that time that she could have spent with him! Wasted on what? Basic training that wasn't in the least bit helpful. Except for when Jazz visited every now and then...he always made sure to take her aside and show her some of his special ops. techniques. But even Jazz rarely got to contact his creations anymore._

"It got better when I got older, though...kind of," she cringed slightly. "I didn't really talk to anybot, and I was a jerk to some bots," she recalled.

Sunstreaker kissed her cheek plating. "Funny, I did the exact same thing," he said, making her smile a bit.

She sighed. "But anyways..."

_Solarstar walked out of the rec room with a cube of energon in her servo. There was a party going on (for some reason...why was everybot celebrating? There was no need to.) and she didn't want to be in the midst of the noisy crowd of femmes and neutral mechs. _

_"Hey, Solarstar!" _

_She turned around to see a mech making his way out of the rec room after her. _

_"Hey, Greyhorn," she greeted with a bored tone. "Some party, right?" she asked sarcastically. _

_He chuckled, walking by her side. "You never were one for parties, were you, Star?" _

_She froze. "What did you say?" she asked, her optics shut and her voice a deadly calm. _

_He continued on as if he had said nothing. "I said, you never were one for parties, were you, Star?" _

_Before the mech knew it, he was pinned up to the wall with a small dagger pointed at his throat. "Don't __**ever**__ call me that again. You don't know me."_

"Wow. And I thought I hated it when someone called me your nickname for me," Sunstreaker commented, chuckling at the story.

She smirked. "Well...after the rumors went around, I didn't exactly have any problems. Only you and Shot can call me that, though. I hardly even knew that mech," she said with a roll of her optics.

He chuckled. "I usually don't like it when Sides calls me Sunny...but I can't really help it. He'll call me that even if I tell him to stop."

_"Solarstar...?" _

_Solarstar frowned. "What do you want, Shot?" She heard footsteps come up to her berth. _

_"I just wanted to make sure you were okay," her twin said with a concerned note in her voice. _

_Solarstar scoffed. "Yeah, well, I fine," she said sarcastically. _

_Sureshot sighed and sat down on her sister's berth. She let silence reign for a while until she asked, "Why did it bother you that he called you Star? You let me call you that," she mentioned. _

_Solarstar turned over to look at her sister. "You're my twin, Shot. And he's not the only other bot that I'll ever let call me that," she said shortly, turning back over so her back was to her sister. _

_"Who...who is the other bot, then?" _

_Solarstar's spark clenched painfully. Had her sister forgotten about Sunstreaker? How could she? _

_"You don't..." she hesitated. "You don't remember Sunny?" she asked sadly. _

_Sureshot tilted her helm to the side. "I...no, I don't. I'm sorry, sis. You know I don't have the best memory," she mentioned with a joking tone, but Solarstar just frowned and turned away again. Sureshot sighed. "We left Cybertron a long time ago. Whoever you remember...they may not be online anymore. But for your sake, I hope they are," she whispered as she got up and left. _

_Solarstar sniffed as she felt tears starting to well up in her optics. He was online. He had to be. Primus, she felt so..._

"...paralyzed," she finished. "I always felt like I couldn't do much of anything without you around," she recalled, a distant look in her optics.

Sunstreaker frowned, pulling her back into him even tighter. "I never forgot about you, Star...I promise," he whispered, hoping to make her feel better.

She smiled at him. "I know you didn't..." she trailed off. Then suddenly, she giggled. "Do you remember when we were younglings? And we were in the solar cycle care that one time?"

_"Sunny...whuh are 'ou pain'in?" she asked curiously, looking over his shoulder plating. _

_The little mech put his helm down, embarrassed. There was a reason he had taken his little easel over to the corner this cycle. "Uh...well...ih's sposed ta be you..." he trailed off bashfully. _

_Silence seemed to hold time for a while until little arms encased Sunstreaker's body. "Ih's so prehhy, Sunny!" she told him sweetly, making the little bot blush. _

_"Ih...Ih is?" he asked. Solarstar nodded excitedly, prompting the little mech to motion for her to come forward. _

_He cupped his servos and whispered into her audio units. "I wanna be a pain'er when I gwow up...an' den we can bon' and be bes' fwiends foweva," he told her. _

_Solarstar agreed with his secret with a nod. "I didn' know 'ou bonde' 'our bes' fwiend," she said with a confused look. "I though' 'ou bonde' with a bot 'ou love." _

_The little yellow mech shrugged. "Wel...ou're my bes' fwiend, bu' I love 'ou. So ih's both." _

_"Oh..." she said, then smiling suddenly. "I love 'ou, too."_

Sunstreaker chuckled. "That was probably my worst painting yet, and you still loved it," he told her, making her giggle again.

"It was adorable," she insisted with a smile. She suddenly frowned, though. "I always held onto that memory when I was on the ship. I would play it through my processor almost every lunar cycle before I fell into recharge...until that one cycle..."

_Solarstar walked through the halls to the comm center with a small smile on her face. It was time for her and Sureshot to check in with opi and danni on Earth. They had gone to this planet some time ago, and they had lately been saying that the war may have finally found it's final battle ground. _

_She walked into the comm center, only to find Sureshot arguing with a mech named Wire. "What do you mean you can't contact him?!" Sureshot screeched. _

_Wire gave an exasperated look. "I already told you- our comm system is down. We can't get it back up because we don't have enough power to fuel it," he explained. _

_Sureshot gave a frustrated noise before she stomped out of the room, leaving Wire looking sorrowfully at Solarstar. _

_"We...can't...contact opi?" she asked quietly. _

_The communications mech sighed. "Yes, Solarstar. I'm sorry. I'm going to try to find a solution, but...Earth is very far away. Even when the system is working, it's sometimes hard to ensure that it will get through to them," he said, but she had already walked away._

_She walked through the hallways in silence. She ignored other bots and they ignored her. _

_'I can't contact them.' That was the only thing she could think of. She couldn't contact her opi, or her danni, and she couldn't ask about Sunny like she was going to this cycle. _

_She couldn't know how they were doing. What if they got hurt? What if they got...offlined? _

_She stopped at a window, looking out at all of the stars. They had been wandering for a long time now. Far too long. Maybe it was fate. Maybe they weren't meant for each other. Maybe..._

_Who knew any more. Maybe this war would never end. _

**_"I wanna be a pain'er when I gwow up...an' den we can bon' and be bes' fwiends foweva."_**

**_ "I didn' know 'ou bonde' 'our bes' fwiend. I though' 'ou bonde' with a bot 'ou love." _**

**_"Wel...ou're my bes' fwiend, bu' I love 'ou. So ih's both." _**

**_"Oh...I love 'ou, too." _**

_Solarstar sighed. Maybe fate had some other design._

"So that's what happened..." Sunstreaker murmured. Solarstar nodded solemnly in response. "We were told that you guys were offlined by a rouge Decepticon ship. It was the only thing that made sense as to why we couldn't pick up your signal..." he said, trailing off.

"And then the cycle came when we received an encrypted message from Optimus telling us to return to Cybertron," Solarstar told him with a smile. "I was so excited to go back, yet so nervous. I just hoped that all of you were online. It was a miracle that we received that message at all."

Sunstreaker set his chin on top of Solarstar's helm, the sky now completely dark except for the two moons and a few scattered stars. "You know that I love you," he whispered softly, causing Solarstar to turn around to look at him. "And I promise I'll never leave you again."

She smiled, leaning up and placing a kiss on his lip plates. As the two sat in silence the rest of that lunar cycle, she couldn't help but wonder if he had really meant it when he told her they would bond all those eons ago.


End file.
